Stormy Weather

I don't know about you, but I just love these summertime afternoon thunderstorms...

Congratulations on a great decision, New York!

And congratulations to the LGBT community - we're now one step closer to marriage equality for ALL people in the U.S. As we wait for the remaining states to fall in line, a celebration of rainbows:

Happy Summer!

Enjoy yourself this summer!

See the seven wonders of the world!














Spend some time by the shore.




Enjoy a tasty treat.
















Take a walk in the woods.













Soak up some sunshine!





And have a wonderful time!!!

A Celebration of Nature

While veganism is often a boycott of a perverse industry, vegans walk the world with a song in their hearts. Why? Because veganism is also a celebration of all the living things in the world. Vegans express a respect and love for nature by refusing to exploit it. And vegan artisans often enjoy revering the beauty of nature in their work. Below are some of these gorgeous expressions from the Vegan Etsy Team.

"After the Rain" from Tharn Photography

"Purple Spring" Floral Collage Locket from Silent Lotus

"Elephant Congratulations" notecard from Merry Blues Art

"Butterfly Taking Flight" from 3am Art Productions

"Stillness" from Colby Krolak Studios

Find all this and more by searching the tag "veganetsy team" on www.Etsy.com. ;)

Pop Stars!

After a vicious winter, many of us are heading into a sweltering summer. And it's still technically spring! Doesn't seem quite fair, does it? We've all got to try to beat the heat - what's your favorite method? How about a popsicle!

Making popsicles at home is easy and fun, and generally a lot more healthy than eating those bought at the store. You can find molds at specialty kitchen and baking stores and sometimes at your local grocery, but even without molds we all remember the old trick of an ice cube tray, a sheet of plastic wrap, and some tooth picks. Delicious doesn't have to be fancy! You can use pretty much any non-carbonated beverage - mix it up with fruit juices, homemade lemonade and limeade, iced tea, punch, and more!

What's your favorite popsicle recipe? Share it with us in the comments, and you might just get your very own blog post!

The Handy Dandy Member Guide

Hello teamies! The purpose of this guide is to provide members with an easy reference to the ins and outs of the Vegan Etsy Team. If you have any questions at all or need help figuring something out, please don't hesitate to ask!

Member Benefits

Being a member comes with a lot of benefits. Other than the publicity we've received, and the exposure it gives to our members, being a member includes -

• using our team tag - “veganetsy team” - in your listings. Please note that ‘veganetsy’ is one word, not two in this application (but not elsewhere!);
• being hearted by the Vegan Etsy shop as well as other members.
• joining the team officially through Etsy and appearing on the Etsy team profile page;
• a new member welcome post on VeganEtsy.com;
• eligibility to join the team flickr group and post pictures of your items in the pool;
• eligibility to add your blog to our blog ring;
• a ton of support and companionship from your fellow teamies, on the message board and otherwise!;
• member discounts from a number of team member shops - details on each shop can be found here;
• participation in team games and challenges on our message board, with a chance to win prizes from a variety of member's shops.

You can also submit articles - fully accredited to you - to be posted on VeganEtsy..blogspot.com which will give you exposure to our hundreds of followers. Please contact Melissa Bastian if you'd like to contribute.

• An original recipe
• Any sales or specials that you are having in your shop(s).
• A review of a team member item
• An ISO - "In Search Of" - an exact description of an item that you'd like designed for you by a team member, a sort of challenge for the team
• A screenshot of a treasury made up of Vegan Etsy Team items - a great tool for creating treasury images can be found here.

Team Sites

Vegan Etsy is all over the internet! Other than our blog, we have the following sites-

• The team shop
• Message Board
• Team Profile on Etsy
• Myspace
• Flickr group
• Facebook Group
• Blog Ring

Getting Active
Active members are what makes our team a successful one and every little bit that members can do is appreciated! Here are some ways to become involved with the team and support your fellow members.

• Use our team graphics on your sites and in your store listings. Print them out & hand them out where you feel appropriate (in packages when you sell, local shops like coffee shops and boutiques, etc.). They can be found here.
• Post about our team on your blog and other websites.
• Make a team treasury. If you do, post about it on the board, on our Facebook pages, and everywhere else!
• Write an article about our team for your local paper or an online site. If you do this and it is published, please let us know!
• If you have purchased something from another member’s shop, write a nice review about it for our blog. Include any links or pictures that are relevant and send it all along to Melissa Bastian.
• Post in the Etsy forums and bump any threads that have to do with our team or veganism. If someone is looking for a vegan product, recommend one of our members.
• Show other members the love! Heart their stores*, favorite items from their stores, make them your friends on flickr, indiepublic, facebook and myspace. Take it a step further and make them your friends on myspace and Facebook, follow them on Twitter - we've got a great group of people here, and it's all about building a community.
• Give each other support on the message board. The stronger our forum community grows, the better!
• When a team treasury is made, click on the items in the treasury and leave a comment. This helps to bump its "hotness" up and get noticed more.
• Participate in team events! They are fun and help the team members get to know each other.

*For anyone who wants to add new members, check out the blog every Saturday. I always post a list of the week's new members (unless if we didn't get any that week, of course).
How To Find Members and Their Items

You might be wondering how to find our products on Etsy. It's easy:

• When you're visiting Etsy, do a search for our team tag, "veganetsy team", or just click here
• Visit our members on the Etsy Teams Page

A few things to always remember:

*As a team member, you are a voice for the team, and your representations reflect on us - hopefully in great ways!
*The team is here for you! Always feel free to contact the team captain, leaders, or members with questions or for advice, or just for fun.
*We're glad to have you here!!

Now get going - see you on the boards! ;D